With my main running goal being to finish the Eastern States 100 miler in August I knew I would have to spend a lot of time on the Pennsylvania trails this spring. I attempted the inaugural ES100 in 2014 and made it 73+ miles before getting timed out. I was going to drop anyway as I was not mentally prepared to spend the entire 36 hours I had to finish the race. In 2015 I paced my friend Stacy the last 40 miles for her second consecutive finish on this tough course. She will be going for the three-peat this August!
When I mentioned to my wife, Mary, that I wanted to attempt this race again she gave me her blessing as she is my number 1 supporter and my rock! Then she had the audacity to ask me what I was going to do differently to avoid the dreaded DNF (did not finish) result. Huh? Oh, she meant how was my training going to better prepare me for this race. I get it, the more preparation you put into it the better chance you have of reaching your goals! Not just talking trail running here folks! Success on any level is not reached by accident!
I knew I would have to run more hills and get better at hiking them too. For me that meant running more in the mountains of Pennsylvania. Nothing like training on similar terrain to physically & mentally prepare you for finishing your goal race. I looked at the races available along with Mary & my schedules and everything seemed to fit for me to do 3 spring races in PA. The first was the Hynerview Challenge 50K in April, then the World's End 100K in May, and the Laurel Highlands 70.5 miler in June. It was kind of cool that the Race Directors of the 50k & 100k decided to create a PA Triple Crown of Mountain Running series this year with the finale being the ES100 in August. Maybe they can talk with the RD of Laurel and make it a Grand Slam in the future!!
Hynerview 50k 7500' of elevation gain 4/23/16 website
I had previously run Hynerview in 2014 to prep me for my 100 mile attempt at Eastern States.
No offense to those that run at Mohican, but Big A$$ Hill is about a speed bump out here! I actually ran this years 50k about 22 minutes slower than 2014 but considered it a much better run because I felt strong at the end and wasn't really trying for a specific time. This course is beautiful and challenging! They don't call the first climb Humble Hill for nothing. Great seeing so many friends out on the trails. Good work Jon, Stacy, Eddie, & Sean and everyone else on a tough course.
 |
| Me & Eddie Carrigg pre race |
 |
| Standing at mile 4.5, race starts across the river down below |
World's End 100k 12,400' of elevation gain 5/25/16 website
This was actually my first 100k, and I heard a pretty tough course so my only goal was to finish in the allotted 19 hour time limit. No problem, I finished with 13 minutes to spare! I spent a bit of time on the trails with Eddie Carrigg & his son Cliff. Eddie was also using this as an Eastern States training run. It was nice to hopscotch back and forth with those two as Eddie & Cliff would power hike past me on the ups and I would pass them on some of the downs or the flats. I believe they finished about 8 or 9 minutes ahead of me. Thanks to Eddie's wife Suzanne for the Blueberry muffins and some impromptu crewing for me! After this race I feet pretty confident using my trekking poles and having a pack on all day. Once again I felt pretty good throughout the day and at the finish. I can definitely tell my endurance is getting better. The 100k had 12,400 ft of elevation gain and some very technical trails. I know all of these PA training runs are giving me the best chance of finishing well in August.
 |
| My pre & post race accommodations |
 |
| Got to climb this ladder & saw many small falls during the run |
Laurel Highlands 70.5 miler 12,000' elevation gain 6/11/16 website
The last of my three PA training runs, like the previous two, worked out well! To also help prepare for my August race I have been staying in my tent or car pre and post race so as not to be too comfortable. For Laurel I had 2.5 hours of sleep before the school bus picked us up at the finish at 3:30 am for the 5:30 am start. It was also supposed to be close to 90 and humid with a chance of thunderstorms so this would be a good test of my endurance. I think it only reached the mid 80s and we only got one quick major thunderstorm but it was a very humid day. Great to see so many familiar faces not only running, but volunteering at the race also! Especially Anne, Suzanne, Kim, and Robert. Thank you and all of the volunteers for making this a great day! I also got to see one of my more recent running friends Jon Crays & Barb Kosinski at packet pickup and during the race. Met them both in person at the Hyner race in April and saw them again the week before this race at a local 1/2 marathon. Thanks for the impromptu crewing Barb and I look forward to seeing you on the trails at Mohican 100 Saturday. I am pacing a runner from Tennessee her last 44 miles and Barb is doing the 100. You got this Barb!!!!!
It was a tough course, but I felt it had the highest percentage of runnable terrain compared to the first two races I did. I heeded the advice of many and took it easy the first part of the course so I would be able to run the later sections. My only mistake was wearing a different pair of shoes on such technical trails. After the 9th time I fell in the fist 40 miles I couldn't wait to get to my drop bag and my good old Saucony's. Eddie is now the proud owner of those other shoes! The Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail was awesome, and I really felt good the entire run. My one goal was to finish the race in under 20 hours to use it as a Western States 100 qualifier. The race itself had a 22 hour cut off. I finished in 19 hrs 33 mins and aside from being sore from the falling, came out unscathed. My Pennsylvania prep work is all but done except for a trip or two to Oil Creek for a change of scenery. Now to dial in my training a little bit more for the next 9 weeks until I hit the PA trails once more!
 |
| Laurel Highlands trail crossing the PA Turnpike at mile 37 |
 |
| The day before at the last mile marker! |
